In 1969, representatives of Hydro-Quebec and the Churchill Falls
Labrador Corporation (CFLCo) signed the Churchill Falls power
contract. It was the result of many years of negotiations and
involved complicated financing agreements.

Not long after 1969, this long-term contract came to be perceived
by most Newfoundlanders and Labradorians as extraordinarily unfair.
Practically all the benefits were seen as going to Hydro-Quebec and
the province of Quebec generally, with little gain for either CFLCo
or this province, the resource owner. Various provincial
governments have protested, complained, taken legal action, called
for federal government intervention, and sought re-negotiation.
None of these efforts has resulted in any change to the
contract.

It is now about forty years since the contract was signed. But it
is not over. That contract together with other agreements tied to
it will continue to determine who will get the benefits of this
huge hydro-electric development for decades to come, even after
2041.

The purpose of this presentation is to explain the history of
events that has put Churchill Falls on its current path, and to
look ahead and identify what is in store for the future. Knowing
how the contract came about is crucial in assessing whether that
future is inevitable.

Dr. James Feehan is a professor of
economics at Memorial University.Untilrecently, he was also Director of the
university’s Institute for Social and Economic Research as
well as Director of the J.R Smallwood Foundation for Newfoundland
and Labrador Studies.